Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,192

moisture outside of it. My eyes followed his thumb, tracking the movement while his attention remained on my face.

Knox didn’t speak more than that. He didn’t argue with me when I’d told him I hated him. It was strange and unsettling. Warning flags were being erected, and they were bright red. I grabbed the glass, downing the drink in a hurried motion that made me gasp. Knox grabbed the bottle, refilling my cup without a word as his eyes roamed over my face.

Why wasn’t he talking or threatening me? Why wasn’t he doing anything other than pouring me a whiskey? Why did I feel like my skin was crawling, and everything was coming unhinged? I lifted my hand, pushing the stray hairs away from my sweat covered face, his eyes following them as I grabbed the whiskey, downing it.

Knox leaned forward, his scent assaulting me until I squirmed in the chair. My tongue jutted out of my mouth, licking my lips as his pupils dilated. Nostrils flared, and I stifled a moan that threatened to rip from my throat. He could smell my need as surely as I scented his.

Basic Animal Mating 101.

Predators tracked their prey, marking them and hunting them down by scent. My nipples hardened, and those sinfully blue eyes lowered to where they pressed against my restraining top. Unhurriedly, they settled back on my face, and I purred huskily, causing his smile to turn predatory.

“We’re about to get pounced, Aria.”

“Now you talk? I am going insane!” I snarled inwardly.

“Not insane. It’s here—the last stage. Knox is aware and is just waiting for you to reach your breaking point. I must warn you. I feel—violent. I think he knows what is coming and is allowing nature to take its course. I can barely contain the need to take control, and yet I feel trapped within you. I have never felt trapped. I feel—scared.”

“What? Ember, you’re never scared. Why would you be scared? What is happening? I feel like I’m about to combust and rip everything to pieces inside this place!”

“Look at Knox,” Ember instructed, and I did, peering at him with hunger burning in my eyes. Worse, he looked—excited. His tongue escaped his mouth, trailing over his lips before he sat forward, and both Ember and I flushed with need.

My back arched, and my body moved forward while inhaling his earthy masculine scent of sandalwood and citrus. His lips curved into a sinful smile that held my eyes stuck on their fullness. Lifting his glass, Knox licked the rim, and I swallowed past the tightening of need that swelled in my throat.

A droplet fell from the glass, landing on his stomach, and I followed it down his chest. I tracked it until it met his pants, becoming absorbed into the material. My eyes didn’t leave the V-line that sat exposed until I gradually brought my eyes back to his, glaring at him. I hated that he was perfection, with tattooed ink and hard, sinewy lines I wanted to bite and listen as he gasped.

I snatched my cup from the table, shaking as my body released a scent that made me wince. Knox’s body released one of the same, and I moaned loudly, causing his eyes to grow heavily hooded. Where my scent was delicate, his was raw sex dripping with lust that made my eyes flutter. My womb clenched, begging to be bred like some cow on the farm. Okay, so not so much like a cow as per se a wolf who wanted the alpha to give her some pups. I felt like I was a monster, staring down her dinner, and he was about to be devoured.

“I don’t like you,” I repeated in a breathy tone.

“You don’t have to like me to fuck me, Aria.” I shivered before reaching up and tearing the dress from my body. Knox lowered his eyes to my naked breasts, and his jaw clenched before he slid them away.

I wanted to rip his eyes out for looking away from me. He’d spent days without me, forcing me to feel like nothing. I wanted to hurt him. I needed to rip him apart, shredding his skin until he fucking bled for me. Cracking my neck, he smirked, pissing me off even more. He lifted his fingers, trailing them over his throat, and my teeth pushed through my gums. Heat scorched me from his stare, and I forced my teeth back.

“Whatever happens next, Ember, we do not mark this prick. Shred him, rip